You brought a knife to a gunfight, which has ended many bad guys’ days in many action movies. I couldn’t tell you who did it first, but it’s common enough to be a trope. What if you brought a knife to a gunfight that actually fired bullets? That’s right, we are talking about knife guns.
5 Knives Ready for a Gunfight
The French Apache
The French Apache is a meme at this point. The Apache combined a knife, a pin fire 7mm pepperbox, and a set of knuckle dusters. Legend has it that the gun gained its name from a French gang, or loose collaboration of criminals called Les Apaches, who roamed the streets of France, robbing, beating, and killing.
The little knife gun has a short, folding blade that doubled as either a bayonet for the revolver or a knife that combined with the knuckle dusters for a proto trench knife design. Overall, the folding blade looks quite weak, and I have a hard time believing it would be all that useful. Quite a bit about the Les Apaches has been made up or, at best, exaggerated. So, I doubt these were a widespread option for the Les Apaches.
The Russian NRS-2
Leave it up to the tomahawk-chucking Ruskies to come up with a knife gun designed for military use. The NRS-2 is a single-shot survival knife using a bizarre cartridge. The 7.62x41mm SP-4 cartridge was originally designed for the PSS silent pistol and uses a charge to propel a piston and launch the round.
The NRS-2 has an effective range of 25 meters, which seems awfully optimistic. The gun uses a fairly complicated firing design. For what it’s worth, this is a survival knife, and having a small-caliber gun could be useful for bagging small game. I wouldn’t hope anyone would be trying to win a fight with an awkward-to-shoot knife gun.
The Chinese QSB-11
Not to be outdone by their Communist friends, the Chinese came up with their own knife gun. The QSB-11 takes things to a different level. Why have a single shot when you could have a four-shot knife gun that fires this weird 5.8x21mm cartridge? The gun has four barrels arranged around the blade to offer a repeating action.
A double-action trigger mechanism makes the QSB-11 fast to fire, at least for the four rounds you have. It’s a COP Derringer with a bayonet! This gun is issued to paratroopers and special operations, but hopefully, not as a sidearm, but a survival tool.
Arsenal RS-1
The Arsenal RS-1 is a knife gun intended for weirdos like me who spend too much money on weird things. It has a concealed revolver that shoots six rounds of .22 short and uses a double-action trigger.
The barrel sits above the blade, and the trigger is a simple mechanism that descends from the handle and is squeezed to fire. The Arsenal RS-1’s handle opens to reveal the cylinder and allows you to reload. As far as I can tell, this was intended for American sales, but just know it is an AOW and subject to the NFA.
PKP Knife Pistol
The PKP Knife Pistol is an American design, built and sold by Americans. It combines the function of what is essentially a Bowie knife with a single-barrel break-open gun. Calibers can vary, with .38 Special being the most common. The stated purpose was to create a trapper knife that could kill a wounded animal. Other calibers include .22LR and .45 ACP.
The gun portion appears to use a single-action trigger mechanism with a hammer above the barrel and a trigger as part of the grip. Due to the visible hammer and trigger, this knife gun appears not to be an AOW. That’s neat, but sadly, these are expensive and rare, with low production numbers. There is a website that makes it seem like they are still being made and sold, but I can’t tell for certain if it’s legit.
Knife Guns: Why?
I’d love to tell you why people make these. Obviously, the weirdo market exists, and I’m part of it. Beyond that, it amazes me that two standing armies, which are supposed to be near peers, field knife pistols. Knife guns are certainly rare, but the idea to combine the two has certainly transcended the world and common sense.
